Power Rangers Spirit Lore
by Clementine Plum
Summary: Tsuneo and his sidekick Mamoru, both evil spirits-turned-monsters, grant physical form to dormant evil spirits from Japanese folklore, in order to grow their army and continue their attacks on Little Light, CT. Follow this new team of Rangers as they fight under the tutelage of their mentor Oshieru, in a world where spirits roam, and nothing is as it seems.
1. Just the Beginning

**Chapter Rating: K+ - for mild cursing & mildly scary storytelling**

 **Chapter Date: Saturday, May 2nd & Sunday, May 3rd 2015  
**

* * *

 _Where the hell is blue?_

This was the question on Theo's mind as he lied in his bed that night. Okay, so not exactly his bed, but his temporary bed. In his temporary bedroom in his temporary home. The large estate was settled in a clearing in the middle of a forest, not terribly far from the town of Little Light, and was decorated in the style that the Japanese are so well known for. The house, though nearly the size of a mansion, was simple and practical, and despite the ethnic decor, Theo could tell it had been Americanized some, maybe to help make them more comfortable. For example, instead of a cot, their beds were double-sized and made up in fluffy down comforters of their respectable ranger colors. But, despite the comforts he was used to, the place was huge and certainly not home. It was going to take some getting used to.

At least he wasn't alone. His best friend, Felix, was right next door and Felix's sister, Bridget, just down the hall. He had grown up with them, and Felix might as well have been his brother. He had always been there, as far back as he could remember. Despite Felix's misguidedness, he was the most loyal person he'd met. Theo had no doubt he'd make a good teammate. Bridget was another story. So she wasn't really as vicious as people thought, she could actually be sweet on the rare occasion that she wasn't acting uptight. He guessed that's what happens when you're 'queen bee' of the high school.

Then there was Archie, ranger yellow. He'd also known Archie for as long as he could remember, but he wasn't very close. Theo's father had been the leader of the previous team of rangers, along with Archie's father and both of Felix's parents. After Archie's father passed away, they only met with him occasionally, though they saw him every day at school. As far as Theo was concerned, Archie was your typical jock, captain of the soccer team, popular with the ladies. He was a looker and he knew it too. He had been known to flirt with Bridget in the past, to no avail (which Theo hoped wouldn't pose too many problems), but then again Archie was known to flirt with everyone.

Not to mention Blue's mother who had also been part of the previous team of rangers, but Theo didn't know much about neither Blue nor his mother. He'd only heard her spoken of briefly, knew her name was Jenna or Julie or something, and that as soon as the war ended, she'd fled back home and married young. They never said why and when he brought it up to his father, Ted, he'd say "Better to leave the past in the past, my boy" and then he'd digress, just like he always did when conversation approached an uncomfortable subject.

The team had arrived to the gosuto (which Theo had learned is the Japanese word for 'sanctum') at the designated time of 2:00 pm, in order to-in the words of their mentor, Oshieru-"fellowship and bond with their companions who they were bound to through blood, sacrifice, and ageless tradition."

Oshieru was not quite what Theo had expected. He was a short, stocky Japanese man, approximately 70 years of age, with leathery skin, and snow-white hair that he wore in a queue trailing down his back and in a tied-off beard that reached past his chest. He had the strangest eyes too, almost colorless, like you could see right through them and you knew they could see right through you.

Oshieru's shadow, whom he introduced as Junichi, was to help with the rangers' training where his own ailing body could not. Junichi was an intimidating, muscular man of about 30 years, who seemed to only communicate in grunts and scowls. He also wore his thick, black hair in a long queue, but kept his facial hair trimmed. Junichi towered at least five inches over Theo's own 5 foot, 10 inch frame. Theo was thoroughly convinced that Junichi could take down Tsuneo and the gang with a single glower and they could all go home.

* * *

It was eleven o'clock the next morning and still Blue was nowhere to be seen.

Theo had woken that morning at 7:00 am when their pre-programmed alarms went off. He thought Blue might've arrived in the night, but that wasn't so. He tried to get some sort of information out of Oshieru, but the old man wasn't much of a conversationalist and simply told him to have patience. So he did. Training would have normally begun at eight o'clock, he was told, but since they didn't have a whole team they decided to wait. Instead, they took to one of the training studios and practiced drawing their kanjis. It was something they were all used to, but brushing up couldn't hurt anyone. The symbols had to be done near perfectly for them to work, and when faced with a monster, they had to work.

Theo was finishing the symbol for 'fire' for the umpteenth time when a gong-like sound rang out through the sanctum. It was a moment before he realized the sound was their doorbell. Oshieru was helping Bridget with her kanjis, and Junichi was standing against the wall, arms folded tightly across his chest. The bell sounded again and Junichi remained still as a statue.

"If no one else is going to answer it, I..." Theo trailed off when Oshieru raised his head and sharply nodded at him, with a look that sent chills down his spine. Then again, any time he looked into the man's white eyes he got kinda creeped out.

"It's about time he got here. I can already see it. I'm supposed to be the leader and everyone is going to be disobeying me left and right. I'll have no control. Eventually even Felix will..." Theo trailed off once again when he opened the door to find the blue ranger standing on the stoop. Only the blue ranger was actually a girl. Now that he thought about it, he wasn't sure why he always assumed the blue ranger was a guy. It was kind of ignorant of him, really.

Blue was a slight girl, she must've been a foot shorter than him, though he was probably exaggerating. She had a young face, he thought she couldn't have been over thirteen, but her deep blue eyes, though innocent, told him something different. He quickly noticed a fresh purple bruise blooming from a spot on her left cheekbone and radiating up towards her eye. Her long, blond hair hung in wild, unruly waves all about her and she pushed a piece behind her ear before offering him a small, icy cold hand.

She introduced herself in a soft, albeit slightly monotonous voice, tinged with a clumsy southern accent, "Emmy O'Malley. Blue Ranger. But I guess you knew that already."

He smiled at her for the first time. He hoped she hadn't taken his little rant too seriously. The last thing they needed was trouble between teammates, especially on the first day. The truth was, though he'd never admit it, he was scared. This whole leader thing sort of crept up on him, though he'd prepared for it since he was a young boy, and still he truly did fear failure.

"Theo Merritt. Red Ranger. Here, let me help you with your bags. This isn't everything, is it?"

She had only three medium-sized suitcases and one shoulder bag. That may have seemed like a lot, but not when your stay is indefinite. He and the others had practically moved their whole lives into their new rooms-Bridget and Felix even came with a U-Haul. She blushed slightly and looked at her feet for a moment.

"I do live awful far away."

"Oh, I didn't know that. I don't know anything about you, really." _Well that was stupid. Why would you know anything about her? C'mon, man. You're creeping her out. Remember what dad told you. If you don't establish trust now, the team is never going to work._ "Uh, so what happened to your face?" _Dumbass._

Narrowing her eyes, she quipped with a smirk, "What happened to yours?" and pushed past him into the gosuto, carrying her bags with her.

Blue entered the living area ahead of him and Oshieru acknowledged her by her full name, "Emmeline. How was your trip?"

"Very well, thank you. I hadn't anticipated the train taking so long. I'm sorry I'm late."

"Quite alright."

At this point, Junichi came and gathered her bags in his arms, carrying them up the staircase. Though simple, it was a beautiful thing with intricate rails carved from raw bamboo.

Oshieru gave them all time to sit and get to know one another, saying they would begin their training tomorrow. It wasn't long before Blue was peppered with questions.

"How old are you? You look so young."

She glared at that one. "Seventeen."

"So are you a junior or a senior?"

"I graduated early."

"You said you had to take a train to get here. Where do you live?"

"Georgia."

"That's cool. What part?"

"An hour west of Savannah."

"Why didn't you just fly in?"

She just answered that one with a shrug. She seemed uncomfortable, and she was doing a terrible job of trying to hide it.

"What did you do to your face?"

She flashed a grin that didn't reach her eyes. "I'm clumsy."

The room settled into an awkward silence. Theo took it upon himself to break it. "So I guess we should start lunch... Sandwiches, maybe?"

Oshieru had informed them that they were welcome to the kitchen and everything in it, and that most of their meals would be left up to them. The pantries and refrigerator were stocked with nothing but healthy options, which Theo knew would get tiring but it would help them in the long run. Overweight Power Rangers never did anyone any good. Theo led the way to the large kitchen and began setting out the ingredients onto the wooden countertops. Despite the fact that the rangers' parents were sending money each month to Oshieru to help with living expenses, Theo couldn't help but feel awkward about eating someone else's food. He supposed he'd get used to it eventually.

It was late in the afternoon when Oshieru gathered them all into the main room for a meeting, and they were seated around the large, comma-shaped area.

"You already know much; of Tsuneo and his followers, of the power you gain from your Magatamas, of the sacrifice and-"

At this point Theo was sure this was going to be another droning dialogue from the old man about tradition and sacrifice and exactly what he heard every day growing up from his father.

"-but there is much you do not yet know."

 _Or not._

"I'll start with the monsters. Firstly, they aren't quite monsters. They are spirits that were granted physical form."

Felix cut in, "What? How?"

"Well, Izanagi gave it to them."

The rangers looked at the man with expressions of equal parts confusion and intrigue.

Oshieru sighed, "I suppose I shall have to start from the beginning: Long ago, there was a great, evil spirit called Izanagi who held much power. One day Izanagi washed his face in the river, and from his right eye was born a daughter called Amaterasu, goddess of the sun, and from his left eye was born a son called Tsukuyomi, god of the moon. From his nostrils, however, was born another son, Susanoo, god of the sea. While Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi used their powers for the good of the earth, Susanoo used his powers for evil. Amaterasu bore spirit children with the sky, Tsukuyomi bore spirit children with the stars, and Susanoo bore spirit children with the earth. Susanoo found favor in his father's eyes, while his siblings were seen as an abomination with their kindness and gentle ways. And so a familial war began. What the good siblings lacked in power, they gained in numbers. They had multiplied many times over and had countless spiritual offspring, and with these spirits gained control over Izanagi and Susanoo. They hadn't the heart to destroy their father and brother, so instead banished them to Yomi (or hell, if you will). They lived for many years before they died, leaving behind their children to guide others to peace. And so the world continued for many years.

"Izanagi and Susanoo, who were thought long dead, had only been waiting. Waiting for their time to take back the earth. They knew that they could do nothing from Yomi, their spirits being vanquished for eternity, but they still had one chance. In order to regain their physical form, they'd have to relinquish most of their power, becoming much weaker beings. And so they did just that. They transformed their spirits into the form of monsters and were sent out of Yomi, as no living thing can be there. Since then they have roamed the earth, destroying every good spirit, and turning the evil spirits into physical beings to join their camaraderie. This small band of monsters soon turned into an army."

They were silent for a while, digesting the story.

"Izanagi and Susanoo are Tsuneo and Mamoru," Theo said.

Oshieru nodded in assent.

"I get the whole take-over-the-world thing, but what exactly are they after?" Emmy asked.

Oshieru answered, "In short, the good spirits. The descendants of Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi."

"Then why the attacks on humans? Why cain't they just find the spirits and go on their merry way?"

"The spirits are only part of the problem. Humans pose a very large threat to their master plan."

Emmy speculated, "So why Little Light?"

"That is something we do not quite know yet. It must have some sort of significance to them, perhaps they are searching for a particular place or thing. We do know that there has been much more spiritual activity here in the past few months."

At this, Archie butted in, "Whoa, whoa. Slow the roll. Nobody said anything about ghosts."

Oshieru smile. "Not ghosts. Spirits. And it is quite likely that if you encounter any at all, they will be friendly. I am most confident that Tsuneo has taken in and transformed nearly all of the evil spirits. While spirits do possess more power than humans, they cannot physically harm you. Not even the evil spirits."

"Well that's comforting. I guess."

* * *

 **So! Welcome to my new story, following a brand new team of rangers! Thanks so much for taking the time out of your day to click on this story, and I hope that you will stay to read it, follow along, review as much as possible, and enjoy it!**

 **I will go ahead and say that while this story will be following the whole group of rangers, it will be mainly revolving around the blue ranger, and I'm trying my best to keep her from becoming a Mary Sue as a result.**

 **Right now, the story is rated 'T', which may change only occasionally for a few chapters later on, in which case I might post those chapters separately. Still, I'll try and keep it at a 'T'. You can find the individual chapter ratings along with contents at the start of the chapter, as well as the current date within the story.**

 **If you would, please check out my profile for more information on the Rangers (including pictures), and their families, and a one-shot about Emmy's background. Thanks again, and enjoy!**


	2. Training

**Chapter Rating: K+ - for mild language and mild action**

 **Chapter Date: Monday, May 4th 2015**

* * *

The next morning, the rangers took their training outside. The back yard, being at least two acres, was reserved for this very purpose. It was enclosed by tall wooden gates that backed up to the woods surrounding the entire property.

Junichi jumped straight into it with hand-to-hand combat, each of them taking turns fighting the monstrous specimen of a man.

Theo would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous. He'd also be lying if he said he thought their first fight being with Junichi really did much to show their strengths. The former was probably because he doubted himself tremendously. The latter was probably because Junichi intimidated Theo far more than he'd like to admit. Both were definitely because Theo knew how important it was that he present himself to his teammates as an expert fighter who they can rely on in battle. And, of course, he blew it when he didn't see that fist coming and fell out only two minutes into the fight.

"That could've been a blast from a monster's weapon," Oshieru called out from his place with the others at the edge of the grass, "or worse. Pay more attention."

Felix replaced Theo and the fight began. Felix kept up better than Theo had, but in Theo's defense, he probably had a little less on his mind. He always had a little less on his mind.

Junichi swung, Felix ducked. Felix faked left, Junichi followed. This continued for some time until Felix finally gave out. Theo wasn't surprised; Felix had plenty of skill and form but he wasn't the most active guy. While Theo was training until his legs were useless and his arms felt like Jell-O, Felix was vegging out in front of the television until his eyes bled and his stomach bulged from cheese puffs and actual Jell-O.

And still he had outlasted Theo.

According to Oshieru, he needed to keep both eyes on the opponent and distribute his weight evenly. They'd work on that later.

Next was Bridget. Even when she was fighting, she looked exactly the same as when she was strutting down the halls of the high school. Head held high, shoulders back, arms moving with elegance and poise. Always ready to try and make an impression. Theo thought that was something they had in common. They both cared far too much what others thought of them. Neither of them would admit it aloud, hardly even to themselves, but it was true.

Bridget lasted about the same amount of time as her brother, and went down when Junichi caught her off-guard while she was trying to do an elaborate-looking kick. Trying and almost succeeding. She seemed quite flexible and Theo was impressed with her range of motion. She probably did yoga or zumba or some kind of crap.

Oshieru complimented her technique and told her that she needed to put more power into her movements. Again, weight distribution. They'd work on it later.

Archie's test was less necessary since (they'd found out from Archie) he was trained by a close friend of Oshieru's after his dad died, and so Oshieru already knew a lot of his fighting style. The most remarkable thing about Archie, was that when fighting, he looked like he was having an absolute ball. The time of his life. Theo thought he looked like a golden retriever with its head sticking out the window of a car.

For the most part, Archie kept up well with Junichi. It was apparent that he was agile and energetic. Again, in this fight the loser went down when they were caught off-guard.

Oshieru told Archie that he lacked no strength, lacked no energy, but lacked the ability to keep his guard up. He put too much trust in his opponent. These monsters were nasty creatures, and they didn't play fair. They wouldn't wait around for any of them to collect their wits before resuming a battle. They'd just strike. And strike. And strike.

But they'd work on it later.

Emmy was up last. It was blatantly obvious from the moment the fight began that her training was very different from the other rangers'. Her technique was odd in that she really had none. Her movements were clumsily deliberate, awkwardly powerful.

Theo almost felt like he was watching a street fight, but completely unlike those you saw in movies where the thug suddenly knew how to do roundhouse kicks like Jackie Chan. No, this was more like the fights between the bad kids at school, only with less malice involved and just as much urgency. He was entranced and startled. Blue executed none of the graceful, flowing movements he was used to. Instead, she let her jabs fly with inelegant efficiency, her feet planted firmly on the ground.

After a little while, Theo thought Blue was beginning to take this fight a little too seriously, like she really was in danger and really was protecting herself. He almost (almost) feared she might take down Junichi, when her face met with the ground beneath her. It took him a moment to realize she had actually tripped and not been hit. She rose quickly to resume the fight, the bruise that was already on her face suddenly puffy and red, when Oshieru stopped her.

Oshieru must've realized that something was off about her style-Theo wasn't sure about Junichi, his face revealed nothing-because he asked her simply, "Who trained you?"

"My mother."

No one moved. Oshieru answered, less of a question, more of an accusation, "You are telling me, then, that Julia trained you in a completely different manner of fighting than that with which she was trained her whole young life?"

Emmy didn't miss a beat. "Yessir, that's about right."

Oshieru and Junichi exchanged a meaningful, confused look and they moved on with their training lessons.

* * *

Later that afternoon, the rangers were back in the large sitting room with Oshieru and Junichi. They had just finished their first day of hand-to-hand combat training, and overall their teachers were fairly satisfied with what they had accomplished so far. Obviously, they still had much to do and far to go, but it was a start.

They were all sitting around listening to Oshieru explain more about the complicated life they now found themselves in. They were to be contacted and helped along this journey by their spirit guides-Yurei. The Yurei are good spirits, sons and daughters of Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu, that come to them whenever they need help, and they're also what gives them power through their Magatamas. While their Magatamas were the comma-shaped beads that were handed down from their parents, though, their Yurei chose them.

He explained that their Yurei could choose them at any time, even when they were small children, but they could not contact them until they were called to fight, and still they may not contact often.

"I am glad to say, though, that each of your Yurei have made themselves visible to me, and it is time now to tell you of them," Oshieru looked them each in the eyes with his piercing stare, "Sons of Tsukuyomi; your spirit, Theodore, comes from your Yurei, Daiki, spirit of Justice; your spirit, Archer, comes from your Yurei, Souma, spirit of Loyalty; your spirit, Felix, comes from your Yurei, Isamu, spirit of Courage."

They each nodded in turn, but couldn't keep their eyes from brightening and the smiles from their faces. They had their very own spirits, spirits that had chosen them. It was the thrill of suddenly being a part of something much bigger than themselves that had them all excited.

Oshieru continued, "And daughters of Amaterasu; your spirit, Bridget, comes from your Yurei, Kimiko, spirit of Nobility; and lastly, your spirit, Emmeline, comes from your Yurei, Michiko, spirit of Wisdom."

They all looked at each other, eyes wide, pure pride coursing through their veins.

Oshieru explained a few more things to them, from the alarm that would sound whenever there was a monster spotted in the area, to the rules of the house. "No staying out past 10:00 on your days off. No leaving the gates without permission. You're expected to keep your room clean and to do your part around the house. Absolutely no pursuing your fellow rangers romantically-that's a rule that they tend to bend, but then if they didn't, Felix and Bridget would not be here. Well, neither would Theodore or Emmeline, for that matter."

This caused a round of chortles and raised eyebrows.

Emmy looked to Theo confusedly. "Why wouldn't we be here?"

He chuckled. "It seems my dad and your mom were kind of a 'thing' way back when."

Emmy raised her eyebrows and laughed a little. This was news to her.

Oshieru smiled serenely at the teens, and suddenly remembered something. "Oh! One last thing."

He led the way out the back door and across the yard to a storage shed near the tall fence. As the rangers filed in behind him, they saw lined up before them five solid lumps beneath several large tarpaulins. Junichi removed the tarps with a huff and revealed five shiny motorcycles in each of the rangers' respective colors.

Felix ran a hand over the black cycle. "Sweet! It's not a Harley, but..."

Bridget stared at the pink cycle from afar with sparkly eyes. "So. Pretty."

The rest of the rangers had similar reactions of excitement.

Oshieru explained, "With these motorcycles you'll be able to travel from place to place while being invisible to Tsuneo's monitors. So to both people and monsters, even if you are morphed, you'll just look like kids riding motorcycles."

Oshieru allowed them to revel at the cycles for a few more minutes before leading them back inside, and finally dismissing them. "You should all take the rest of the evening to finish unpacking your things, if you could show Emmeline to her room, and rest well. You'll need it."

* * *

Emmy sighed to herself as she scanned the room she now called home. The walls were mostly bare and were painted a light beige, the floors were the same light pine hardwood as the rest of the large house. The two tall windows on the far side of the room were covered in long curtains the same color as the walls. Her suitcases were set to the right of the door, just in front of a large chest of drawers, and her books stood where she stacked them, on a short shelf between the windows. The bed was double-sized, made of the same wood as the rest of the furniture and floors, and was covered in a light blue down comforter. Perhaps the only thing decorative in the room was the blue throw pillow sporting the Japanese kanji for Emmy's Yurei, Wisdom.

Preparing to turn in for the night, Emmy placed her grandmother's quilt on her new bed, and unpacked the last thing: her photos of her family. She placed them all one-by-one on the low table beside her bed; Jude, smiling a wide, gap-toothed grin; Flynn, laughing out loud as his uncle fell for one of his pranks; Asher, a quiet but proud smile on his face as he was presented an art award; Her father helping her learn to ride a bike when she was small; Both of her parents, herself, and her brothers one Christmas before Jude was born, back when they were mostly happy.

A soft knock on the open door interrupted her reverie, and she turned to see Theo shyly standing in the doorway.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I-uh... I just wanted to say-uh-sorry. Sorry about this morning. I-uh-didn't mean to be such a jerk. And I'm really sorry."

When he saw that the only answer he was getting was a mildly amused smirk, he stuttered, "And anyway, even with the-uh-well, you know, your face still... is-uh-pretty... uh-I mean, it's not-not bad?"

She shook her head but couldn't help a small laugh. "Yeah, well. Yours ain't that bad either."

A slight blush crept up his cheeks, but he looked down to hide it. He just answered with a smile and a nod, and quickly exited back to his own bedroom.

She shut her door behind him, climbed into her bed, and thought about her new life. Maybe she _was_ leaving behind a family that she loved more than anything, and maybe that scared her terribly. But, maybe she was getting something new, a new life, new friends.

 _Friends._ The word scared her and excited her at the same time. She had never been good at making friends, and she had been especially bad at keeping them.

 _But, maybe..._


	3. Satoshi Strikes

**Chapter Rating: T - for mild to moderate language and moderate action/violence**

 **Chapter Date: Monday, August 3rd and Tuesday, August 4th 2015**

* * *

Emmy incessantly banged on the bathroom door. "Come on, Bridget!"

The pink ranger joked back over the sound of the shower running. "Sorry, Peach! It takes time to look this good!"

Archie and Felix were running about the hallway in various stages of dress, and Archie called to her. "You can use our bathroom. Nobody's in there."

Muttering an annoyed thanks, she marched to the other bathroom, and seeing that the door was shut and the light inside was on, she looked back to Archie with a questioning look.

He repeated himself. "Nobody's in there."

Not believing him, though, she knocked and was answered by Theo. "Ocupado!"

She rolled her eyes at Archie. "What are ya tryin' to do?!"

He just laughed evilly and returned to his room.

Emmy shook her head and continued down the hall, pulling her tennis shoes on as she went, and she yelled in exasperation, "I'll just pee outside!"

She nearly rammed into Junichi as she ran down the stairs, and he raised his eyebrows at her earlier exclamation. She just shrugged her shoulders in reply, and continued on her way to the kitchen.

She smiled to herself as she stood on tip-toe to retrieve the cereal from the top shelf of the pantry. She could hardly believe today was four months since she'd arrived at the Gosuto, four months since she'd first begun training, and almost four months since she'd fought her first monster. She carried her bowl to the kitchen window where she watched the sun coming up over the forest. It was August now, and while it was hotter than blazes, the air held a promise of cooler weather and crisp fall days.

The alarm blaring interrupted her thoughts, milk dribbling down her chin. Bridget's head appeared around the corner of the kitchen wall, half her dark hair dry and silky, half damp and stringy. "What are you waiting for?!"

Emmy rolled her eyes emphatically as the rangers ran to the backyard shed. Each of them grasping their Magatamas, they began their morphing sequence.

"With the spirit of Justice, Daiki!" Theo's Yurei rolled over him like a thick fog, and dispersed to show that he was now morphed in his red ranger suit.

"With the spirit of Courage, Isamu!" Felix's Yurei manifested as a dark shadow, and spread over him, morphing him in his black ranger suit.

"With the spirit of Loyalty, Souma!" Archie's Yurei appeared like a flash of bright light, and dimmed to reveal him now in his yellow ranger suit.

"With the spirit of Nobility, Kimiko!" Bridget's Yurei materialized like a thousand diamonds glittering from above, and fell around her to unveil her in her pink ranger suit.

"With the spirit of Wisdom, Michiko!" Emmy's Yurei washed over her like a great wave of water, and flowed away to reveal her in her blue ranger suit.

Now morphed, the rangers quickly mounted their motorcycles, and they were off like a shot.

While they were nearing their destination, Emmy's Yurei came to her, and spoke to her thoughts. "This monster will be difficult for you, young one. Guard your mind carefully."

This sent a nervous chill down her spine. Not that the monsters before had been easy, but the rangers had been able to defeat them without too much trouble. And why should she need to guard her mind? Before she could contemplate anymore, though, they arrived at a city square, where the monster was terrorizing a small group of women with baby strollers. The rangers quickly jumped off their bikes, and ran towards the monster.

"Hey, you! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" Felix got the monster's attention. He and Theo taunted him, holding him off while the other three rangers got the women to safety.

Theo asked, "So where are your little henchmen, huh? I didn't know you guys could actually put up a fight alone."

The monster replied, "Ha! I don't need those idiotic little spirits. They only get in the way."

After a moment, the monster realized the women and their babies were gone. "Hey! I was just starting to have fun with them. Oh, well. I guess I can make do with you. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Satoshi, the monster of all knowledge," he reeled around and set his sights on Emmy, "And I know something about you, little Blue Ranger, that no one else knows."

 _'So this is what Michiko was trying to prepare me for,'_ Emmy thought to herself, _'Guard your mind like she told you, and you'll be fine.'_

Satoshi bellowed loudly, "Ha! That is cute. You think you can hide your thoughts from me. I know _everything_."

Theo interrupted him. "Okay, that's enough!"

Satoshi turned to Theo and stared deep into his eyes, causing him to fall over in pain, as he perused his mind and remarked on the things he discovered. "Ha! What a joke," he laughed evilly. "Oh, how sweet," he commented sardonically as he glanced back at the blue ranger. "Well! Aren't you just full of stupid, human little secrets."

Theo just watched him nervously and thought, _'What could he possibly have found out?'_

Satoshi shook his head with a menacing chuckle. "Everything."

While Satoshi had his back turned and was busy with Theo, Emmy and Archie teamed up with a double-attack. The second before their weapons hit his back, though, he whipped around and froze them mid-air with his mind, and the two rangers dropped to the ground in pain.

Bridget and Felix were busy trying to help Theo up off the ground, and Satoshi regarded Emmy and Archie with his perceiving eyes. He pried into Archie's brain, and commented, "Can one brain really be so blank? Useless." Then he set his sights on Emmy once again. "Ah, I have so much information on you already. This will be great fun!"

Emmy prepared herself for what was to come, and Satoshi smiled evilly. "I know something that even you don't know. I know your mother, I know what she has done, and I even know what she's doing right this minute."

He laughed gleefully at the hurt Emmy tried to hide from her face. She had been so busy the past few months trying to keep up with their training that she hadn't even thought about her mother much. She had even managed to forget about most of the pain she had caused her.

Emmy glanced back up at Satoshi's monstrous grin and wished she could wipe it right off his face, when someone else did it for her. Theo's sword cut through the monster's back, and he cried out in pain. "Ah, it looks like you've outsmarted me for once. But do not fear; I shall be back!"

In only a matter of seconds, the monster disappeared. He was gone back to Yomi, where all the monsters reside.

Theo replaced his sword in its sheath, and leaned down to offer Emmy a hand up. They looked at each other with the same unspoken question. ' _What are you hiding?'_

* * *

When Emmy cried out in her sleep that night, Theo was the one that was awoken. It was no wonder, though, because Bridget slumbered with whale calls and nature sounds playing through her headphones, Felix slept like a log, and Archie's room was further down the hall.

At first, he thought there might be a burglar or a monster, so he grabbed his sword without any thought and ran out into the hall. But then he remember that there were alarms active all around the house, and even placed around the yard and gates, so it would be near impossible for anyone to get inside. Then he considered that a spirit could have floated past the barriers, made its way inside, and startled Emmy. This calmed him a bit as he crept over to Emmy's room; while spirits could scare the living bejeezus out of you, they could cause no physical harm. But, no, Emmy had encountered spirits before, and had remained pretty calm. So he didn't know what to expect as he peeked around her bedroom door.

What he found, though, was Emmy sound asleep in her bed. Relieved, he turned around to head back to his own room, when he heard her cry out in distress. "No! Momma, please!"

He reentered the room, and saw that Emmy's face was pinched together in anguish. "Momma! We do need you, we do!"

She rolled over to the other side of the bed and muttered, "Please don't."

He thought for a moment she had fallen back asleep, but she curled her knees to her chest and whimpered in pain. "Ow!"

Okay, that was enough. He knew he had to wake her up from this. He tried gently shaking her shoulder, but she just continued to whimper. He shook her a bit harder and called softly, "Blue? Blue, wake up. You're okay. Just wake up now."

Still asleep, she tightly grasped the hand he'd placed on her shoulder, and slowly she began to wake up, all the while muttering, "Momma".

Once she fully came to, she realized where she was and she removed her hand from his, looking embarrassed. "I woke you up. I'm sorry."

Theo shook his head. "No, it's okay. But are you okay?" He knew he wouldn't get much of an answer, though. She had that look in her eyes that said she wasn't going to open up. In fact, anytime anyone brought up her mother or her training or her home life, she got that look. He'd learned to accept it. If she wanted to talk about it, she would when she was ready. But waiting was making him impatient.

"Yeah, no, I'm fine. Just a little nightmare, probably from the monster today. He's a difficult one."

Theo didn't believe her, of course. She'd never had nightmares after a fight before, and that didn't explain her calling out for her mother.

"You can't keep things bottled up like this, Blue. It's only going to hurt you worse in the long run."

She just looked down at her bedsheets and wiped the perspiration from her forehead. Theo sighed agitatedly, stiffly bade her goodnight, and returned to his bedroom.

* * *

Theo grinned as he drove his ranger cycle down the quiet, winding streets of Little Light. He hadn't expected Oshieru to agree and allow him these couple of hours off, but he supposed the old man understood it was for a good reason. Of course, he didn't like the idea of being apart from his teammates if Satoshi suddenly decided to strike again, even if his Yurei would alert him just as soon as an attack were even likely.

He was so used to worrying about the well-being of his teammates, now that he had an opportunity to think of anything else for a little while, he honestly didn't think he could do it. Satoshi seemed to have a hold on them like none of the other monsters had. And anyway, how could you fight a monster that literally knows everything? Surely he had a weakness. Everyone did. Still, it seemed like he was really targeting Theo and especially Blue. And Blue! What was up with her? God only knew.

And that brought Theo to his current destination: his home. He parked the motorcycle in the garage of the modest-sized brick bungalow house, and walked through the well-kept garden to the front door. He knew he'd find his dad there, since he worked from home as an author, but his mom would just be starting her shift at the hospital as a neonatal nurse.

The door was jerked open before Theo even had a chance to reach the porch, and his father stood there with a smile on his face. His dad, Ted, was a bulky man with ruddy skin and hair, and a full beard just beginning to gray. They looked nothing alike. His mother being a redhead too, it was no surprise that Theo was adopted.

Theo wrapped his dad up in a bear hug. "Man, I missed you."

A few minutes later, they were in the kitchen making grilled cheese sandwiches.

Ted flipped a sandwich and looked back at his son. "So, how are you feeling? You look good."

"I'm fine. Good."

"I don't think you'd be here if you were 'good.' How are your teammates? Well, Felix and Bridget I can already guess about, but the other two?"

"Archie is essentially a lab puppy, as far as personality goes. He's all upbeat and optimistic, but he's loyal as a dog. But, Blue-er, Emmy-is, well..."

Ted raised his eyebrows. "That bad, huh? Julia was a bit of a prankster, a little rebellious, but overall she was a good, uh… teammate."

"No, it's not that. She's really stubborn, but she's a hard fighter. In fact, she was the only one who could hold their own against Junichi the first day of training."

Ted nodded, looking slightly impressed. "But…?"

"Her fighting style is really weird; it's almost like street-fighting. It's not what we were all taught."

Ted plated their sandwiches. "Does Oshieru notice this?"

"Yeah, he asks her about it and she swears that her mom trained her."

"Hmm..."

"And she's so secretive. She won't talk much about her home or her parents, especially not her mom."

Ted replied, "Like what?"

"This monster that we're dealing with right now is called Satoshi, and he's the 'monster of knowledge.' He knows _everything._ He read my mind, but he didn't even have to read Emmy's. He said that he already had tons of information on her, and he knew something that even she didn't know. He said he knew things about her mom. And then, last night after the fight, Emmy had this weird nightmare about her mom."

"Did she tell you what the nightmare was about?" Ted asked.

Theo took a swig of lemonade. "No. She was calling out for her mom and it woke me up. She won't talk about it, though."

Ted sighed. "You can't make someone do something they don't want to do, something they're not ready to do."

"I know that, it's just..."

"A pain in the ass," Ted answered for him.

"Yes!"

"Theo, sometimes when people are hurting, it takes them longer to realize that while they can't make it stop, there are people who will be there. That's the best thing you can do: be there."

This took Theo aback. He had never considered that Emmy had some sort of painful past involving her mom. He'd just assumed the dream might've been because she was homesick, and Satoshi's information was meant to make her worry for her mom since she lived so far away, and yet he knew where she was.

"Sometimes," Ted said, "you have to make decisions-hard choices that you don't necessarily enjoy. You can't let any feelings that you might have get in the way of that; not your friendship with Felix, not whatever it is you have for Emmy."

Theo blushed profusely and stammered out a protest. "I-I don't have any..."

"I know you, Theo," Ted interrupted him with a small smile. "But you have to set your feelings aside, and do what is right for the whole team. Because you can't let the world be put into danger over a crush. I know, it's harsh. It's a hard lesson, one that I had to learn myself."

Theo sighed. "So I shouldn't care so much?"

"No! You absolutely should care, I'm glad that you do. But just watch yourself, okay. I don't want the team hurt, I don't want the world put into danger, and I certainly don't want to see you get hurt. So if Emmy's training starts causing trouble in battle, you can't hold back from enforcing the rules."

Theo just nodded in reply. After a few minutes of the two Merritts eating in companionable silence, Ted said, "Now, about this monster," he shook his head. "I really can't speak from experience. We never had any monsters quite like this. But I can say that it seems like all of this is nothing but a mind game. You have to believe that if you don't want the monster prying into your brain, he can't. He's only able to get inside your head, because he tells you that he can. Only when you truly close off your mind to him, and know that it is guarded, will you be able to defeat him. Use his 'powers' against him."

"Yeah. That makes sense. Thanks, Dad."

"It won't be easy. But-"

Theo's Yurei, Daiki, interrupted his dad then, and spoke to his mind urgently. "You must get to the woods behind the Gosuto right away. Satoshi has made a reappearance."

Suddenly, Theo jumped up from his stool. Even though Daiki hadn't said it, he had a feeling that Emmy was in trouble somehow. She liked to wander around the woods, even though Oshieru warned them to be careful and not go too far, because the entrance to Yomi was deep in the forest, and because of the strong evil there, their Yurei could not follow them far.

"Dammit, Blue," Theo muttered, as he quickly morphed in front of his dad.

Ted understood what was going on immediately. As his son flew out the door, he laid a hand on his shoulder and said, "Make me proud."


	4. Satoshi Strikes (Again)

**Chapter Rating: T to M - for moderate action/violence, moderately explicit references to self-harm, and coarse language**

 **Chapter Date: Tuesday, August 4th 2015**

* * *

Emmy looked up over her book from her seat on the leaf-strewn forest floor. She'd heard a sound coming from deeper in the woods, and she clutched her magatama in anticipation. She didn't realize she had been holding her breath until she felt her chest tighten, and she let it out, her breaths coming in quick spurts. The sound came closer, and suddenly a pair of brown rabbits bounced out of the bushes and into the small clearing. Emmy smiled, and sighed in relief. The last thing she needed was another monster to deal with. If she was being honest, she still didn't feel recovered from the fight with Satoshi yesterday, and she really wasn't ready to face him again. Plus, she was in the forest where Oshieru had warned them to be careful, but she'd never been so great at following the rules. Well, technically he'd said not to go _too_ far, and she knew her way around well, having trekked through the woods often in the four months she'd been there.

Sometimes she just needed some peace and quiet, and the forest offered that. She enjoyed walking around, and discovering parts of the woods that she'd never been to. She also enjoyed just sitting back with a good book, nothing to interrupt her but the soft calls of the birds, and the water running in the creek nearby. She did heed Oshieru's warnings, though, and always made sure that she didn't wander too far into the forest, and if she did go too far, her Yurei would warn her. She tried to be careful, because she didn't want to run into any malevolent spirits or monsters coming from Yomi. She certainly didn't want to run into Yomi itself. She shuddered at the thought of the untold horrors that lied there, and tried to switch her focus back to her book.

Soon, she was drawn back into the world of her book, completely oblivious to the monstrous form approaching her.

The next thing Emmy knew, she'd dropped her magatama in her haste to morph, and Satoshi had her backed up against a tree. She had nowhere to go, no weapons. Physically, she was completely defenseless, so she did the only thing she could: she put up barriers over her mind. She wouldn't let him get to her this time. Sure, he knew about her mother, and about her past. So what? Emmy had lived it, so this monster bringing it back up shouldn't hurt her so much. It wouldn't hurt her. She wouldn't let it.

Satoshi smiled and Emmy kept her thoughts in check. _'I won't let you into my mind. It is mine. You can try all you want, but my thoughts are my own. I won't let you in,'_ she continued this mantra repetitively, and it seemed to be working. Satoshi seemed taken aback for a few moments, but then that wide, evil grin took over his monstrous face again. "I may not be able to pry into your mind right now, but I still know far more than you."

Emmy just shook her head and continued to keep her guard up. He wouldn't get to her this time.

Satoshi leaned in slowly, and crouched down to her height, until he was mere inches from her face. He turned his head and whispered into her ear. "She tried to kill herself again today."

This sudden news rocked Emmy to the core, and she couldn't stop her hand from from covering her mouth. She made a sort of choking noise somewhere at the back of her throat, but she tried urgently to gain control of her mind again. Satoshi placed his huge hands on each of her shoulders and leaned in closer. She fought desperately to get him off, but he was simply too strong.

She could feel his odorous breath rustle her hair as he said, "Unfortunately, it didn't work, though."

Emmy hung her head. She felt relief wash over her, but there was something else gnawing at the pit of her stomach. It was so unfamiliar, she couldn't quite place it, but since her guard had dropped, Satoshi saw it too, and he pointed it out with a sick grin. "Is that disappointment you feel, little blue ranger? Are you sad that it didn't work? That the gun was so old, it didn't go off; that the pills she took just weren't strong enough, and your foolish, nasty mother will continue on this earth until the next time she tries?" Emmy's tears ran down her face, creating red streaks on her cheeks. She felt so violated, so humiliated. "Well. It seems you're more of a monster than I ever suspected."

Emmy squirmed, so weak, but still fighting her hardest to get away. Satoshi's grip on her shoulders tightened. "Wait just a minute, little maggot. There is more. Don't you want to know who found her? Who tried their absolute hardest to stop her?" Emmy shook her head violently, crying out to her Yurei to get help. Somebody had to stop him. She didn't know if she could take what he was about to say. Satoshi smiled more serenely than Emmy thought possible for a monster. "Why, it was your darling little Jude. Such a sweet boy. I doubt he'll ever be able to get that image out of his mind."

Satoshi loosened his grip on her shoulders then, and let her fall to the ground in a heap. She tried to control her sobs, but it was just too much. She had always been able to keep her brothers safe, to keep them innocent and oblivious to their mother's problems. But now that she wasn't there, something terrible had happened, and Jude would be ruined forever. He was only six years old, and now his innocence was gone. Yesterday he was a sweet, fun-loving little boy and today he was a grieving, serious adult. He saw what no grown-up should have to see, yet alone a small child. She had wanted so much more for them. She had wanted them to have a normal childhood, something completely different than what she'd had. She hadn't wanted them to have their naivety ruined like hers had been.

Satoshi stood over her as she cried, and he said, "Yes, his innocence truly is gone. He will forever be plagued by the image of his mother slumped over in her bathtub, pistol in her mouth, trying desperately to make the trigger work."

Emmy kept her head down as the monster continued rubbing the horror of the situation in her face, when she noticed a movement from the corner of her eye. She quickly recognized Theo's figure, and immediately tried to guard her mind again. She pushed all of her other thoughts away; everything that had just happened, the thought of her poor little brother, her mother wherever she was, all of it. She just focused on not letting Satoshi in. If he read her mind right now, he'd know that Theo was there, and they'd never be able to do a sneak attack. And right now, deep in the forest where their magatamas would only give them so much power, they needed the advantage.

Emmy also focused on trying to stop her flow of tears. She didn't want anyone knowing about her mother, or the life that she left behind. She wasn't sure how long Theo had been there-surely not long, because he would've immediately begun preparing his attack-but she would still need to come up with an excuse for why she was down and out. The rangers would ask what Satoshi had said to her, and she'd need a believable lie.

With all of this thinking, Emmy must've let her guard down some, because Satoshi commented, "Stupid little ranger, you think lying will work for you forever. You'll have to tell the truth eventu-"

He was interrupted with another sword in his back, which Theo quickly thrust out, back in, and out again. The monster now had two large stomach wounds, and he stumbled back in pain. Theo took this opportunity to help Emmy to her feet. Now that Emmy had gained back a little more strength, she morphed, while Theo got into a fighting stance. Emmy quickly joined him, and Theo looked closely at her. He wondered at the things he'd overheard Satoshi saying to her, and he felt a stab of guilt. He knew it was wrong, letting her sit there in pain while he listened in, but he told himself that he had to do it. She was always lying, and he needed to know what was going on for the sake of the team. There were still so many things he wanted to ask her, but they'd just have to wait. Maybe this was going against what his dad had just told him a little bit, but he'd said to be there for her, which he would, but he'd also said that he had to stand up and be a leader. That was what he was doing, right?

Satoshi regained his strength and grinned evilly. "You've got all these questions, red ranger. Ask her how she _really_ received that bruise she wore when she arrived here."

Emmy faltered, and Theo glanced back at her. This gave Satoshi the weakness he needed to get one up on them.

Theo stopped the blow with his sword before it could hit the both of them. He decided to try the tactic that his dad had suggested, telling himself that the monster's powers didn't-couldn't-exist as long as he believed they didn't. "If you knew everything, you could just tell me yourself."

Satoshi replied, "But where would be the fun in that? And anyway, you want to hear it from her too. Isn't that why you waited around back there in the brush, letting little Blue suffer, until finally moving in to help her? You're just a nosy little mole."

Emmy looked at Theo, and he didn't have to see her eyes to know the hurt and disappointment there.

Satoshi laughed evilly, and they heard the leaves rustle behind them. Suddenly, the other three rangers leaped into the clearing and lined up beside them. Bridget said, "Sorry it took us so long. We ran into a group of this dick head's minions."

Satoshi said, "I told you, I travel alone. It was a chance encounter, I'm sure."

Emmy growled. "Whatever. Let's just get this shit over with."

* * *

Felix rolled over and groaned. Satoshi was finally defeated, his body dead and his spirit banished to the deepest layers of Yomi, but it hadn't been an easy fight. Felix looked up from his spot on the ground and sighed in relief when he saw the rest of the rangers looked disheveled, but mostly unharmed. He felt a few cuts along his own arms, but he'd had enough experience to know when he was seriously injured, and when they were just superficial wounds. He'd live to see another fight, and another abominable monster.

Felix thought back to what he'd heard Satoshi say to Theo just before he'd barged into the clearing with the other rangers. He'd said that Theo had just stood there, listening in while Emmy was being tormented by the monster. Felix shook his head. No, he told himself, there was no way Theo would do that to her. He knew how much he cared about Emmy. But he also knew how prying Theo could be. He got so worked up over being as good a leader as his dad that he tended to neglect the rangers in the process. Still, surely the monster had been wrong.

He watched Theo try to help Emmy off the ground, and her practically shove him aside. Emmy sent him a cold glare that was just as hurt as angry, and Theo guiltily turned his eyes away. This exchange was all Felix needed to see to know that everything Satoshi had said was true. He felt his blood begin to boil, and spat angrily on the ground. Theo offered him a hand, which Felix just stared icily at. Theo knitted his eyebrows together, and began to ask what was wrong, but Felix's fierce glower stopped him in his tracks. Felix stood up slowly on his own, all the while ignoring Theo, and stomped off, leading the procession back to the Gosuto.

* * *

Theo was sitting in the chair in his bedroom with his head in his hands when he heard his door open. He glanced up to see a very angry Felix slamming the door behind him. "What the fuck, Theo?"

Theo replied with a blank stare, too stunned to say anything. He had no clue what he was talking about. It must've had something to do with the fight, because when he'd left earlier that day, Felix was fine.

Felix scoffed and glared icily at him. "You fucking let her sit there, being fucking tormented by that monster, while you listened in like a nosy fucking pig!"

Theo gulped. He hadn't seen Felix this pissed off in a long time, not since the time in high school when one of the football players thought it would be fun to string a freshman Bridget along, only to dump and humiliate her in front of the whole school. Felix had been suspended, but if it hadn't been for his powerful father, he would've probably been arrested.

Felix paced the floor angrily, and then stopped abruptly. He turned to Theo with an accusing glower. "And for what? You can't man up and be a real leader without knowing every damn piece of her _private_ life? Did it ever even fucking occur to you that she might want it to stay private?"

Theo shook his head and looked away. "F-bombs," he muttered.

Felix looked ready to hit something.

Theo growled in annoyance. "What do you care, anyway?"

Felix clenched and unclenched his fists agitatedly. "'What do I care'?! I care that she's obviously been dealt a shitty lot so far, and you're a real dick for treating her like this. I care that she's our teammate-she's our family, our sister. If you would've done that Bridget, I would've kicked your ass, and honestly, right now I'm considering the same thing."

Theo opened and closed his mouth. He wanted to try and talk some sense into Felix, to try and show him his point of view, but he knew he was partly right. He should've been gentler with Blue. And anyway, if he said anything at this point, Felix would probably just punch him. Theo knew him well enough to know that when he got riled up like this, he had to be allowed to cool off on his own. Stepping in would only make things worse. So he let him have the last word.

Felix looked as if he was prepared to walk over and sock Theo in the nose, but he was obviously fighting the urge. Finally, he jerked his hands into his pockets and said, "Look. You're either there for her, or you're not, and right now it's looking a fucking awful lot like you're not." Again, he made like he was going to take care of some unfinished business, but his conscious took over, and he jolted the door back open. He shot Theo one last disgusted look, and slammed the door behind him.

* * *

 **If you guys are a little confused here, I highly suggest re-reading the previous chapter (chapter 3), because when posting it, I made a mistake and left out the entire second part of the chapter. Thanks for reading, and as always, please review!**


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